182 



colour. We might say, that the volcano crushes 

 with it's mass the little isle which serves as it's 

 basis, and shoots up from the bosom of the wa- 

 ters to a height three times loftier than the re- 

 gion where the clouds float in the summer. If 

 it's crater, half extinguished for ages past, shot 

 forth flakes of fire like that of Stromboli in the 

 /Eolian islands, the Peak of TenerifFe, resembling 

 a lighthouse, would furnish a direction to the 

 mariner in a circuit of more than 260 leagues. 



When seated on the external edge of the cra- 

 ter, we turned our eyes towards the north-west, 

 where the coasts are decked with villages and 

 hamlets. At our feet, masses of vapour, con- 

 stantly driven by the winds, afforded us the 

 most variable spectacle. A uniform stratum of 

 clouds, the same as we have just described, and 

 which separated us from the lower regions of the 

 island, had been pierced in several places by the 

 effect of the small currents of air, which the earth, 

 heated by the sun, began to send towards us. 

 The port of Orotava, it's vessels at anchor, the 

 gardens and the vineyards which encircle the 

 town, exhibited themselves through an opening 

 which seemed to enlarge every instant. From 

 the summit of these solitary regions our eyes 

 hovered over an inhabited world ; we enjoyed 

 the striking contrast between the bare sides of 

 the Peak, it's steep declivities covered with sco- 

 riae, it's elevated plains destitute of vegetation, 



